The 49-year-old was stopped at a checkpoint near the venue in Coachella, the Riverside County Sheriff's Office announced on Sunday. According to the report, the man was carrying a shotgun, a loaded pistol and a large magazine.

He was arrested on charges of illegal possession of a firearm and later released on bail. At a press conference on Sunday, Sheriff Chad Bianco provided further suspicious facts in addition to the weapons: The 49-year-old reportedly had several fake IDs on him, and his car was not registered.

Suspect defends himself against "nonsense"
After the suspect's release, several US journalists spoke to the man, who rejected the accusation of an attack plot as nonsense. Rather, he was a big Trump supporter, an acquaintance of the man told the Daily Mail. The suspect told the New York Post: "That's complete bullshit. I'm an artist. I'm the last person who would harm anyone."

The two weapons were only for his own safety, the man emphasized. The 49-year-old also denied the accusation of a forged passport. It was a "special passport for journalists". However, none of his statements could avert an hours-long interrogation at the weekend.

FBI is not investigating the incident as a possible assassination attempt
The situation is definitely not yet entirely clear, even if the Secret Service considers it unlikely that the man from Las Vegas wanted to carry out an assassination attempt on Trump. The FBI is also not investigating the incident as a possible assassination attempt. However, a look at the suspect's activities on social media reveals a lot about his political views - and these are by no means left-liberal. He repeatedly rails against the Democrats, especially against Vice President Kamala Harris. The man can also be seen in footage taken during the Republican Party conference in July (see post above).

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